Zambia is endowed with a lot of Non-wood Forest Products which are classified variously, namely fibres, vegetal, fauna, medicines, cosmetics, extractives and services.
The dependence on these NWFP by the Zambian population, especially the rural poorer, is ever increasing with the rise in the production costs and offer prices for the modern products and services since the NWFP have the greatest potential to offer a cheaper and more accessible alternatives.
However, despite having this potential, there is urgent need for carrying out the commodity and value specific research of the NWFP in Zambia.
This paper gives a review of the Non-wood Forest Products in Zambia (NWFP). The review is based on the terms of reference outlined in the EC- FAO Partnership Programme (1998-2000).
The information in this paper will be used along the lines of the Data Collection and Analysis for Sustainable Forest Management in ACP Countries - Linking National and International Efforts.
The terms of reference used in reviewing the NWFP in Zambia are as follows:
· To collect the available current data on NWFP in Zambia and report on its present status.
· To verify and complete data mentioned in the FAO working paper on NWFP Statistics submitted on the occasion of the Mutare workshop in Zimbabwe.
· To compile especially the available in-country information on honey, wax, eco-tourism and bushmeat, including insects.
· To analyse the past, present and possible future trends of the NWFP for local consumption, trade and exports.
There are numerous non-wood forest products in Zambia which are classified variously, but according to Chidumayo and Marjokorpi (1997), the classes include fibres (bamboo, bark, grass, leaves, rattan, stem, vines and papyrus), vegetal products (fruits, fungi, leaves, nuts, roots, seeds, shoots, stems, tubers, spices and flowers), fauna (food and other animal products), medicines and cosmetics and extractives (dyes, oils, fats, gums, latex, oil seeds, resins and tannins).
Non-wood forest products are further classified to cover forest services related to non-wood forest products e.g. hunting, eco-tourism, watershed management and conservation of biodiversity and water resources.
There is very little quantitative data on the use of extractives and fibres at the moment, but empirical observations show that grass and papyrus are used extensively for thatching in rural areas throughout Zambia. In the Copperbelt Province there was a flourishing handicraft industry based on the indigenous Oxytenanthera abyssinica (bamboo) before its massive die-off during 1989/90 flowering season (Chidumayo and Marjokorpi, 1997). This may have been a result of the bamboo undergoing a full life cycle in its flowering pattern.
These are used as food (mostly proteins, vitamins and starch) and as earlier stated include fruits, nuts, roots, tubers, leaves and mushrooms (Chishimba, 1996; Nkomenshya, 1996, 1997). Vegetal products are used at both the subsistence and commercial levels. About one-third (1/3) of rural households harvest wild food resources in form of fruits, mushrooms and root tubers with a gross output of 31kg per household (Chishimba, 1996).
Men, women and children do harvesting of most vegetal products. The impact of harvesting on the environment depends on the species; for example, fruit harvesting which may involve cutting down trees and/or extracting roots and tubers, may have an adverse impact on the species population size and structure. The harvesting of mushrooms has little impact on the resource base. Deforestation on the other hand negatively affects mushroom productivity of species that live symbiotically with trees.
Wildlife in form of fauna is an important source of food (proteins) and non-wood products. Fauna also offers aesthetic satisfaction for tourists and natural lovers. Food from fauna is in the form of bushmeat, reptile and/or bird eggs, fish, insects (such as caterpillars termites and grasshoppers) and honey. Non-food products include hides and skins, bones, horns and tusks, feathers, furs and live animals.
Consumptive utilisation of fauna involves hunting for subsistence, safari and sport needs. Traditional hunters are mostly men who hunt for both subsistence and cash needs. The levels of and, dependence on game in areas covered by a recent survey (Chidumayo and Marjokorpi, 1997) are not well documented. But given that seven out of ten Game Management Areas in the survey area are depleted of game populations suggests that over-exploitation has occurred in these areas. Areas covered by survey included Central, Copperbelt and Luapula Provinces.
Fishing and fish trading is a predominant livelihood system in the valley and swamps of Luapula (Nkomeshya, 1996), Western Province, Kafue flats and along major rivers and lakes (Mpakateni 1994). Honey is also gathered from natural and artificial barkhives for food or beer brewing and sale. Edible caterpillars (especially of emperor moth, elephrodes lactea), are important sources of protein nutrition and cash for both rural and urban households. Large quantities of caterpillars are collected from miombo woodlands (Chidumayo and Marjokorpi, 1997)
Non-consumptive utilisation in form of photographic and game viewing options is offered in national parks. South Luangwa and Kafue National Parks are well stocked and attract a lot of international tourists. The Blue lagoon and Kasaka have the potential to earn the nation foreign currency.
Through the various forms of hunting licences, the Government raises a lot of money, some of which is pumped back into the management of national parks. Licence fees for various animals range from US $0.5 to US $391 for a Baboon and Sable/Roan antelopes respectively. Statistics from two (2) GMAs showed that a total of US $152,470 was raised from licence fees during the period 01/01/96 to 23/09/96 (Kapungwe, 1996).
Where modern medical facilities are limited, or where these are costly, local people depend on plants and/or fauna as sources of medicines for treating human and animal diseases. Parts used for their medicinal properties are tree bark, roots, leaves and animal skins and other organs. There is no gender and age bias in collection, processing and dispensing of herbal medicines even though some culture beliefs may impose temporary restrictions e.g. for menstruating women or persons that are mourning (Nswana, 1996). In a recent survey statistics indicated that 70% of respondents had used traditional medicines and that trade in traditional medicine is worth over US $43m per year (Nswana, 1996). Nswana (1996) has listed 78 species of plants with medicinal value. However, excessive removal of roots and/or bark from medicinal trees and shrubs may cause mortality either directly or through subsequent pathogenic infections. And as a consequence of deforestation and population growth, valuable medicinal species are now often collected from very far places because they have become scarce in the immediate vicinity (Nswana, 1996).
